Wong Kar-wai to Direct Crime Drama ‘Tong Wars’ for Amazon

In the handful of years since his last feature, we’ve been teased with a variety of potential future projects from In the Mood for Love and Chungking Express director Wong Kar-wai. Most recently, there was a Gucci biopic for Annapurna and a TV series in China. Although those haven’t come to fruition yet, it looks like a new one will.

Four years ago while on the press tour for The Grandmaster, the director said, “I’ve always wanted to make a film about the Tong Wars, the rioting and the crime factions in San Francisco’s Chinatown in the early part of the last century.” Well, he’s now going to get his chance, albeit not in the initially-desired form.

Amazon Studios has announced Wong Kar-wai will direct Tong Wars, an hour-long drama series written and executive produced by Paul Attanasio (Donnie Brasco, The Good German), Variety reports. The multi-year-spanning drama will focus on the clashes between the Chinese immigrants and the mob in San Francisco’s Chinatown.” Although it’s not specified if Wong Kar-wai will direct all the episodes, having him back in any capacity will do and with this actually getting a greenlit, we’re bound to see it sooner than anything else he might be working on.